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Defileron
The volcanic planet of Defileron is located in orbit of an uncharted red star in the Imperial Fringe, south of the Reydovan Empire. From 2372 until 2376, it was the home base of the Separatist Confederacy, and later the remnants of the Separatist movement following the death of Artimus Devaneaux and the defeat of his forces at Reydovan Prime on March 16, 2376. It was also a common hub for pirate organizations and independent mercenaries, as well as various other criminals against the Empire. The official name for it - given by Artimus - was the Empire of Defileron. Ruled by the demented Artimus and his successor, Demon-Kieran Devaneaux, the Empire of Defileron led a war against the Reydovan Empire until it was consumed in volcanic fire on December 24, 2376. Joshua Underwood based the idea behind Defileron on a book of Brian Jacques' Redwall series, Pearls of Lutra. In it, a former corsair declares himself Emperor of a secluded island called Sampetra, which becomes a major hub of corsair activity. Unlike Sampetra, which was a tropical paradise, Defileron is more a living hell. (Sampetra was also used as the name of a battlecruiser, HRMS Sampetra, which was used as the flagship of the fictional Joshua Underwood in the early 2300s.) Neighbors Far from the bustling activity of the other nations, Defileron is located near the northern border of the Gorak'nar Commonwealth, in the Beta Quadrant far to the galactic south of the Reydovan Empire. History Defileron was secretly colonized by Artimus Devaneaux in 2371, as a base for his operations against the Empire. It became a haven for the scum of the universe, united by a common purpose: Hatred of the Emperor, Kiran Joshmaul. This did not change when Artimus' son was crowned Kieran I in March 2376. However, the hopes of many of the pirates and mercenaries living on Defileron were dashed when Artimus was killed at the Emperor's hands during the Ides of March campaign. With their lord gone, who would lead them? Living in despair for almost two standard months following Artimus' death, the people of Defileron were given a new lease on life, and a new chance to wreak havoc on the Empire... Rise of the Demon In late April, the clone Demon-Kieran Devaneaux arrived on Defileron and, in the name of his "father" the Defiler, declared himself Emperor. Disturbed at the incredible resemblance to the Reydovan Emperor, they soon grew to fear and respect the evil Demon-Kieran, who was truly touched by their fallen lord Artimus. He completed the citadel at the heart of the planet's largest volcano, now called Artimopolis in the Defiler's honor, and began to rally his forces and spies to send into the Empire and the Federation in order to sow the seeds of discord. One such agent, intended to spark a war with the Federation and the Adiam Pack, was the Solicitor General of the Federation, the xenophobic Captain Dawson Crenshaw. Crenshaw became the chief prosecutor on behalf of the government in the trial of Dr. Rachel Vantine, who was pregnant with the first human/Adiam hybrid child conceived by her and her Adiam husband, Commander Chirann Koresh. Crenshaw knew that while Vantine herself was not considered deathly important to the Adiam people - not, like Helen of Troy, enough to spark a war - it was the child that had their attention. If Crenshaw could kill the child, the Adiam would destroy the Federation, and Demon-Kieran would reap the rewards. Crenshaw was uncovered by SFMC Commanding General Jeremiah Neill, who reported that Crenshaw had mentioned a "Demon" but nothing beyond that. Discovery and Destruction Meanwhile, Imperial Chancellor Joshua Underwood had discovered the true identity of the Demon; while exploring in the Deadwood Valley near the ruins of Castle Devaneaux, Underwood discovered that ships arrived daily from Defileron and used the no-fly zone as a cover to rebuild the fortress. He was briefly captured by the Demon's guards and held until Demon-Kieran himself arrived to take him to Defileron. However, Underwood proved to be far more resourceful, and escaped from the work camp before the Demon arrived. He had stolen a set of numbers from a guard, and he intended to crack the code and find out where Demon-Kieran hid. Until then, he remained tight-lipped, even to his Emperor... Months later, Major General Jonathan Ross - who had coordinated the defense of Earth during its invasion in June-August 2376 in place of his uncle, General Jeremiah Neill - decided to take matters into his own hands while confronting Separatist leader Dawson Crenshaw, the former Federation Solicitor General. Implanting a beacon on the traitor, Ross allowed Federation forces to track him - and thus, the entire Defileron Empire - to their volcanic planet. In November, the Battle of Defileron began, lasting for nearly a month. By its end, Demon-Kieran was dead, and the empire he created in disarray. An overload in the power generator - tapping power from the volcano dubbed Mount Artimus - caused massive tectonic instability. By the time Demon-Kieran died, the planet was beginning to tear itself apart. Massive volcanic eruptions began breaking out all over the surface. Evacuating both his men and the prisoners he had taken, Emperor Kieran managed to get all of his surviving troops off the planet before the planet's surface was completely covered in molten lava. Defileron Today Three decades after that final battle, its location classified by Starfleet Intelligence and the Special Operations branch of the Reydovan Military Body, Defileron remains relatively intact. Surface conditions are now comparable to Jupiter's moon Io, the most volcanic body in Earth's solar system, which is still not able to support lifeforms. The only difference between Defileron and Io is that Defileron still maintains an atmosphere - albeit poisonous to most humanoid species. Now completely unliveable, 63% of the planet's surface is covered in either magma or some form of sulfuric acid, and the remaining 37% is covered in sulfur-laden ash. The atmosphere consists of 72% sulfur dioxide, 28.4% carbon dioxide, and a mere 0.6% of hydrogen and oxygen, heralding a gasping death for any lifeform without some form of protection. Its relative isolation has made it yet again a haven for outlaws - in this case, former Reydovan marshal Ethan Neill and his band of mercenaries, known as the Harbingers. The gigantic shipyard where the [[Mothership "Harbinger of Vengeance"|Mothership Pride of Reydovan]] was built was reconstructed as a repair and resupply base for the ship when it became known as the Harbinger of Vengeance. Category:RPGCategory:Star Trek